The Government has rejected backbench amendments to the Energy Bill that would have given it the power to ban the forced transfer of households onto prepayment meters (PPMs), the End Fuel Poverty Coalition reported on 1 July 20231. Further debate on the Bill will not take place until the autumn after running out of Parliamentary time1.
MPs from several political parties had offered ministers the opportunity to amend the Bill to ban forced PPMs. The latest attempt will be at the Report Stage, where Wera Hobhouse, MP for Bath, has tabled a fresh amendment1. Anne McLaughlin, MP for Glasgow North East, who chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group on Prepayment Meters, said the voluntary code agreed on 18 April to prevent forced installation "doesn't go far enough", and urged the Government to back any amendment giving the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero the power to regulate energy firms and safeguard vulnerable prepayment meter customers1.
The rejection came as campaign group 38 Degrees helped over 20,000 people submit individual responses to Ofgem's consultation on new PPM rules, which propose allowing energy firms to resume forcibly installing prepayment meters while introducing protections for a select group of customers, specifically households with members over 85 or under 51. Of those respondents, 95% told the regulator it should protect all households from forced prepayment meter installations, and more than 44,000 people have signed a 38 Degrees petition calling on Ofgem to ensure no one is forced onto a prepayment meter against their will1.
The End Fuel Poverty Coalition said expert reports cited in its official response to the Ofgem consultation highlight the health problems potentially caused by prepayment meters switching off and leaving people in cold damp homes1. It said that despite bans on courts issuing PPM warrants and a voluntary ban on firms forcing people onto the meters, examples have emerged of firms still threatening the use of court warrants and forced entry1.
"A legally enforceable ban on the forced transfer of homes onto a PPM is the solution to this abuse of power. Yet the Government continues to refuse to amend the Energy Bill to provide the protections vulnerable households need."
Ian Preston, director of household energy services at the Centre for Sustainable Energy, said the regulator needs to make better standards a licence condition rather than relying on principles1. The Coalition also pointed to plans put forward by charities including the Money Advice Trust for a Help to Repay scheme for energy debt, which it described as a sustainable way to help households1.
Why it matters for households
A prepayment meter requires credit to be added before energy is used, and when that credit runs out the supply can stop. For a household already in debt, a forced transfer changes how energy is paid for and how much control the household has over when supply continues. The rules covering prepayment meters and vulnerable customer protections set out which customers suppliers must not move onto these meters, and the question of whether a smart meter can be switched to prepayment without consent turns on the same consent rules. The moratorium on involuntary prepayment meter installations and the voluntary code agreed on 18 April are the current arrangements in place while the Energy Bill is debated. Because the amendments were rejected, the power to impose a legal ban sits with Parliament rather than ministers for now, and the practical protections a household can rely on remain those in the code and in Ofgem's licence conditions. How prepayment meters work, including topping up and emergency credit, and what happens during disconnection, warrants and forced prepayment installation, are covered in more detail elsewhere on this site.
What happens next
Further debate on the Energy Bill will not take place until the autumn, after running out of Parliamentary time1. Wera Hobhouse's amendment is tabled for the Report Stage1. Ofgem's consultation on new PPM rules, which proposes protections for households with members over 85 or under 5, has closed; the outcome has not been reported1.
Sources1 cited
- Government show 'dereliction of responsibility' on prepayment meters, endfuelpoverty.org.uk